page_title: Trijata
section_title: The Ramayana
hierarchical_section_title: Trijata / The Ramayana
caption_attribution_description: Rama &amp; Lakshmana bound Rama &amp; Lakhsmana lie on the battlefield, ensnared in the weapons of Indrajit, the monkeys and generals stand around them. Indrajit returns to the city in triumph and is congratulated by his father. Ravana makes Trijata take Sita in the Puspaka chariot over the battlefield to see her husband lying slain.
context_page_description: Trijata is a rakshasi in the Ramayana who is assigned the duty of guarding Sita who was kidnapped by king of Lanka Ravana. In latter adaptions of Ramayana, Trijata is describe as a daughter of Vibhishana.
  In the Ramayana, Trijata appears as a wise old rakshasi, who dreams of Ravana's destruction and Rama's victory. She accompanies Sita on a survey of the battlefield of the war between Rama and Ravana, and reassures Sita of Rama's well-being when Sita sees her husband unconscious and presumes him dead. In later Ramayana adaptations, Trijata becomes the daughter of Vibhishana, the brother of Ravana who sides with Rama. She plays a much greater role in later versions, especially Southeast Asian ones.
  Barring a few exceptions where Trijata is cast as Ravana's agent, she is generally portrayed as a friend and loyal companion of Sita in her adversity. On numerous occasions, she offers solace to Sita and brings news from the outside world; she also dissuades Sita from committing suicide. After Rama's victory and Ravana's death, Trijata is richly rewarded by Sita and Rama.
context_section_description: In the original Ramayana by Valmiki, Trijata is described as an aged rakshasi (demoness) who is prominently featured in two incidents. The first takes place in the Sundara Kanda, the epic's fifth book. The kidnapped princess Sita is imprisoned in the Ashoka Vatika of Lanka. The demon-king of Lanka, Ravana has ordered the raskshasis who guard Sita to convince her to marry him by any means possible, since Sita adamantly refuses and is still faithful to her husband Rama. After Ravana leaves, the rakshasis start to harass Sita to compel her to change her will. The aged Trijata intervenes and narrates a prophetic dream that predicts Ravana's doom and Rama's victory.
  In her dream, Trijata sees Rama and his brother Lakshmana riding the celestial elephant Airavata toward Sita. Rama takes Sita in his lap and rises high in the sky, allowing Sita to touch the Sun and the Moon. Then the trio ride to Lanka and get into the Pushpaka Vimana (aerial chariot of Ravana) to fly towards the north, while Ravana, drenched in oil and with a red complexion, lies on the ground. Ravana then heads south on a donkey and falls in a pit of dung. A black woman in a red saree, drags him to the south. Other members of Ravana's family, like his brother Kumbhakarna and son Indrajit, face similar fates. Ravana's brother Vibishana is seen in regal white garments, riding a four tusked elephant near the Pushpaka Vimana. The city of Lanka drowns in the ocean and a vanara) messenger of Rama burns the city. Trijata advises the rakshasis to take refuge in Sita and apologise to her; in turn, Sita promises that if Trijata's dream materialises, she will protect her rakshasi guards.
  The second incident is found in the sixth book, Yuddha Kanda. Rama and his brother Lakshmana come with a vanara army to rescue Sita from the clutches of the demon-king. On the first day of war, Ravana's son Indrajit binds the brothers with the weapon Nagapasha (serpent-noose) and the brothers lose consciousness. Ravana sends Sita with Trijata to see the battlefield. Thinking her husband is dead, Sita laments, but is reassured by Trijata that the brothers are still alive. Trijata expresses her love for Sita and tells her that the captive's "moral character and gentle nature" have compelled her to love her.
caption: Scene from Yuddha Kanda of the Ramayana, where Trijata is seen thrice with Sita. On the top right, Trijata (in a red saree) is seen twice in the Pushpaka Vimana, surveying the battlefield and seeing Rama and Lakshmana bound by Indrajit's weapon. In the right side (bottom panel), she is seen with Sita in the Ashoka vatika.
exif: {"Image Copyright": "Public Domain, from the British Library's collections, 2013"}